Doreswami Naidu was born in a humble family in Kaium Betur, a village in South Tamil Nadu, India. His father, Arekum Naidu, was a cultivator and was also involved in the collection and disposal of animal bones.

Civil war raged in the eastern region of Pakistan after the provincial leader, Sheikh Mujibur Rahman, proclaimed the region an independent republic. President Yahya Khan outlawed the Sheikh's Awami League and denounced the Sheikh himself as a traitor whose crime “would not go unpunished.”

It was late afternoon of 25th March. Professor Govinda Chandra Dev, along with a junior colleague of his from the philosophy department, was crossing the road near TSC of the University of Dhaka to go to Ramna Race Course for his regular stroll.